#death is in the details fic

[sortofanobsession]

Death is in the Details - Our Flag Means Death (Post Season 1 fic) Part 6 Complete

Summary: Blackbeard succeeds in hunting down the Gentleman Pirate. Izzy Hands loses his temper. Blackbeard finally gets the answers he didn't think he would ever get.

Final Chapter.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5 (Ao3)

Author’s Note: Thanks again for sticking around and reading. I know Izzy will probably have a big role in the show still, but I just had to do it. I never really give up on a fic. I just get distracted (sometimes for a very long time). New season is soon, maybe I'll get some inspiration. Or let me know what you want to see.

wordcount: 3k+

Warnings: Violence, anger, betrayal, sword fighting, stabbing, blood, death (the typical pirate stuff), doubt, guilt, pain

Blackbeard storms into the deck of the ship Stede and his crew commandeered. He remains stoic as he passes a few members of the crew he had basically sentenced to death for no other reason than Ed was heartbroken, and it made his heart hurt to see so many people that were so inextricably linked to Stede Bonnet. But no matter how much he had tried to prepare himself to see the Gentleman Pirate, it did little to prepare him for actually seeing him. He stopped in his tracks as Stede came up from below deck. And it was like his chest was too small and his insides too big. His chest hurt in a way he had only felt a few times. And almost always having to do with Stede fucking Bonnet. The last time had been when he was directed to the grave he was told bared Stede's name. It had overwhelmed him then. He could still vividly remember it. The groundskeeper had also pointed out the Badminton brothers' comically large monument of a headstone as he recounted the tale of Stede Bonnet and the brothers. He'd taken his anger out on the Badminton's graves. Then Ed had felt grief and anger, as he often had in life. But now, he wasn't sure what he was feeling. Grief at the chance he had lost that night at the dock. Anger at Stede for breaking his heart. Relief that Stede was still very much alive and he had found him. His attempts to figure out his emotions were interrupted by his first mate shouting. 

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!" Izzy Hands snaps when he lays eyes on the Stede Bonnet. "Why won't you fucking stay dead?!" the mate's anger boils over as he lashes out with his blade. He repeatedly strikes at Stede, but his anger makes him sloppy, and Stede was managing to hold his own.

Initially, Ed finds it a bit amusing how furious Izzy is and how Stede seems to do what Stede does best. Manages to make the best of the worst, but the longer it goes on, the more desperate Izzy seems to get. And when Izzy landed a decent blow that Stede managed to mostly block but sliced open Stede's forearm, that was too much. That was when something in Edward Teach broke. Like before, the idea of watching Stede die, especially after genuinely thinking he was dead for a time, gripped Ed's heart. Fear. He hadn't truly felt it since Stede had faced the firing squad. His petty anger at being abandoned was outweighed by the idea that Izzy might not only ruin his chance to know what really happened that night at the dock but also take away the hope that still lives deep in Ed's chest. The hope that Stede didn't leave him by choice. That Mary had been telling the truth when she said Stede had loved him. He just didn't know what love actually was. He couldn't just do nothing. As Stede went to try and block another blow, his arm bleeding from where the blade had grazed his flesh, Ed was there, his own blade blocking his first mates. 

"You've made your point, Izzy," Ed says. 

"You defend him after he fucking abandoned you. You told me yourself you'd-"

"I did not," Stede says. "I was going to meet you, Ed, I swear, but Chauncey-"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Izzy snapped as he attempted to get past Ed to kill Stede, but the pirate captain wasn't having it. Especially when he had interrupted Stede when he was telling Ed exactly what Ed had wanted to know. With a swift movement, he frees his blade and makes quick work of getting the upper hand over his emotional first mate. He draws on every ounce of his Blackbeard mentality as he does. And with little resistance, disarms the first mate. 

"You disobey me?" Blackbeard challenges. "You, Israel Hands, have betrayed me. Questioned my command, and you forgot your place." The Captain backs the unarmed man against the railing. "Now, you turn on me again. I have grown tired of your attitude. I let you live because I had so few crew members left. But you make a mockery of me. It's time you pay for your actions."

"Ed," Stede goes to try and reason with him because betrayal aside, Izzy had been Ed's friend. He shouldn't have to be the one to do it. But Blackbeard doesn't show mercy, and he has already let this traitor live far too long. One flick of the blade, and he cuts Izzy across the face. Then he drives his blade through his shoulder.

The crew watches in shock as Blackbeard stalks forward and gets in Izzy's bloody face. "I should have made you eat more than your toe," Blackbeard states. "I should kill you slowly and painfully, make you pay for every betrayal, but I have more pressing matters." Ed draws back and runs him through again. "Don't worry, Izzy. I'll see you again in hell." With that, Ed shoves him over the railing and into the harsh waters of the sea. 

He turns around and takes in the shocked faces of both his crew and Stede's. They see a look of determination on the Kraken's face. He doesn't miss the way Frenchie and Jim have joined their friends. 

"Those who question me from here on will join him, understood!" Blackbeard states. "Mutiny, betrayal." He looks at both crews. "Once more, you will pay with your life. I AM your captain. If you don't agree, this is your only chance." He gestures to the ship he stood on as he heads towards his own but stops. "Leave now, but if you do and you betray me, I will hunt you down, and you will beg for death." He looks at Stede's crew. "Your survival shows you have more guts than I expected. Consider yourself lucky."

"About that," Stede starts to say, but before he can continue, Ed turns his focus on him, and it's like when he first saw the truly intimidating part of Blackbeard. 

"You," the legendary pirate says. The crews silently watch as Blackbeard crosses over to get in Stede's face before heading back to his transport. A handful of the crew follow him. Stede is quick after him. Most of the crew, practically all, makes their way back to the Revenge for lack of knowing what else to do for now. It didn't seem like either boat would be going anywhere quite yet. One barely had a crew, and the other they had very little attachment to. Their goal had always been to get back to their original one. 

"Ed," Stede starts, but an angry noise accompanied by the man's blade stops him. 

"Blackbeard," Stede corrects, even if it feels wrong. "I can explain." Blackbeard gets in his space again. 

Most of Stede's crew steps away to be out of the blade's reach. All but Jim and Frenchie. 

"Don't be a fucking idiot," Jim hisses before going to join Olu and the others. 

"Pretty sure they mean that to both of you," Frenchie says. "Glad you're not dead, Stede." He looks at Blackbeard. "If you kill him, at least show him the drawing first." Blackbeard glares at him. But nods. The musician/scribe/confidant pats the so-called gentlemen pirate on the shoulder, earning a slight wince. The fearsome pirate looks down at the blood still dripping from Stede's torn sleeve. 

He looks over at Jim and then at both crews. 

"Get back to work!" He practically barks at the crew before dragging Stede toward the cabin. He isn't exactly gentle with the gentleman pirate as he drags him to the quarters they once shared. There is an uneasy air in the room as both pirates stare at each other. The awkward silence is broken as Frenchie comes in.

"Roach said you might need these," Frenchie sets down a tray with a bowl of water and some cloth and looks at Stede. "For your arm." The man then leaves because he does not want to be drawn into that mess any more than he already is. With the momentary distraction gone, the two men look back at each other. Stede Bonnet sighs. He has to fix this. He loved Ed. He knew that now. He had to say something. 

"I know you're angry, and that's understandable, but did you have to take it out on my crew? I still can't believe you-" Stede stops when he finally looks away from the man he loves and takes in the state of the cabin he designed. "Ed…"

Ed has to look away because Stede looks so concerned. So caring as he looked back at Ed that it did funny things to the pirate's cold heart. He looks at the tray and the supplies Frenchie had brought him. He goes over and retrieves a bottle of rum from the desk. He takes a long pull off the bottle in an attempt to soothe his demons.

"Tell me what happened that night before I change my mind," he says as he shoves Stede down in a chair. Stede goes without a fight. Ed is almost shocked when Stede doesn't even flinch when Ed bares a knife and cuts away the torn and bloody sleeve. Ed was surprised that Stede didn't even lament the loss of a good shirt. And Stede clearly still trusted Ed if he didn't even bat an eye at the idea of an angry Blackbeard having a knife so close. Ed could kill him in several ways from the way Stede is just sitting there, looking up at him. And again, his chest feels too small, too tight for his body, but still somehow cold and empty. 

"As I said before, I didn't intend to leave you, I didn't have much choice. Chauncey came for me before your guard did." He explains the whole thing, and Ed doesn't say a single word the whole time. His face was an unreadable expression masking his internal turmoil. Even as Stede goes over the parts, Ed already knows. The parts he had heard from Mary Bonnet herself. 

"He loves you, you know," she had told him. "Find him, Ed. He is looking for you." And now he had found him. But Stede is still talking, and Ed focuses back on that because that is what he needs to know. 

"Even if I had a way to find the guard, to get to you, it was too dangerous. Chauncey was dead. I didn't do it, but they wouldn't believe me. If they had followed me, I would have led them to you, and I…I couldn't risk it. And I needed to make things right. I have made so many mistakes. And I didn't realize…Nothing I can say could ever tell you how sorry I am. You weren't you, not really, in that place. You didn't even care about your beard." Stede says sadly before gesturing at Ed's gray beard with a slight grin. "Grown back nicely, I'd say." 

And Ed isn't sure what he is feeling. Or even how to process what he had just been told. He abruptly stood and pulled the now slightly worn paper Mary had given him. 

"I'm sure Stede would want to see it," she had told him. He had kept his word now. He owed them nothing. Stede had gone to her instead of him. But he kept it. And thinking about it now, he knows it's because she had given him hope. Hope that his life wasn't the rage and darkness of the Karken and nothing more. Hope that Stede hadn't chosen her over Ed because here Stede was with him and not her—all the effort Stede had made to get back to where they were. 

"From your wife," Ed states and hands the paper to Stede.

"My…my wife?" Stede is confused as he unfolds the paper and sees the slightly worn but clear-as-day drawing of the leopard that belonged to the widow Evelyn Higgins, the little signature at the bottom being his son's. And as much as it tugs at his heart, he knows he will probably never see his son again. He knew it was the way it should be. He didn't even understand how he was even looking at this drawing now. "You went to-"

"I needed answers," Ed states.

"Did you get them?" 

"Some, but I got far more questions than answers," Ed admits.

"For me?" Stede asks, earning an annoyed glare from the tired captain. 

"For the cat," the loathsome pirate deadpans, "of fucking course for you!"

"Alright, that was probably a given," Stede admits, his unease showing in exaggerated gestures swinging the drawing around. "But I told you, it was never my intention to-" 

Ed curses and grabs Stede's injured arm so the foolish man won't make it worse as he moves. "You're bleeding all over my ship," Ed states.

"Our ship," Stede corrects. Ed pointedly ignores him as he sets the booze down and starts to clean up the bloody wound on Stede's arm. "Ed, what questions do you still have?" 

"I wanted to know why you didn't come to the dock. I wanted to know why you chose her over me. I wanted to know if I had been wrong. To know if I was sitting on the docks while you needed me. Could I have done anything differently?"

"Well, I told you why I didn't go to the docks. I didn't choose Mary over you. I just needed to make things right with my family. My children. And Mary, she didn't need me. She never really did. She didn't love me. Not sure even my parents did. Or anyone." Stede says sadly. He looks at the drawing by his son. And that pains Ed because Ed knows he wasn't loved as a child. He always had known. But he had known love to an extent. 

"Your daughter wanted me to tell you she still has half of the orange," Ed says.

Stede sets the drawing aside and looks at him. Stede can't bring himself to say anything to that. He just thinks about his half of the orange that is safe in the few things he had. He just hoped that some of the crew would take the boat. He hoped someone had at least grabbed them for him. He hoped Olu or Buttons would have the forethought to do so. But there wasn't much he could do right now. 

"Your home was nice," Ed says. And Stede nods. 

"That was Mary's doing. She made it more of a home than I ever could."

"Is that why you left them everything?" 

"Considering what all I had taken from her when I left, it was owed. I was a fool. A selfish fool. I can see that now."

"What changed?" Ed genuinely asks. 

"You," Stede says. And Ed's hand stills where he had carefully cleaned the dried blood on Stede's arm. Because he had doubts since that night that he had any real impact on Stede's life, to hear it put so bluntly was jarring. He distracted himself by using the rum to rinse the cleaned wound. Stede winced as he did. 

"Sorry," Ed mumbled. 

"I'm the sorry one," Stede says, putting his free hand over Ed's as he wraps a bandage around his arm. "I know I hurt you, and I know I can never truly take that hurt back. But I wanted to make things right here, too. I know I will never see my family again. And I'm okay with that, so long as I have you. If you'll have me still. I don't need to-"

He's cut off when Ed knocks him back against the seat with a kiss because Ed had missed Stede more than he had ever missed anyone.

"Wait, wait," Stede pulls away, leaving a confused Ed to wonder if he was wrong again. The pirate's annoyance grows at the possibility of rejection, but Stede just smiles and grips the other man's face. "I didn't even tell you the best part."

"Was it the fuckery? Because your wife said, it was exactly as you planned it."

"She did? Wait, no, that's not," Stede laughs. "It was a good show. You'd have loved it."

"I don't think I would have. You nearly die far too often," Ed points out.

"Fair enough," Stede nods. 

"You were saying?" Ed prompts him. He didn't even mind that Stede still had a hold of his face. Stede was laughing and smiling as Ed's world had righted itself. That the warmth he had so greatly missed was back, and it wasn't just the warmth of the man's hands on his face. It was like the sun coming out after a storm. 

"Right, yes," Stede nods again. "I realized that I had been selfish because I wanted to run off with you. More than I had ever wanted to be a pirate. And trust me, I had wanted that more than anything. I would spend the rest of my life in the run from the crown, to spend with you. I was even willing to risk you or Izzy Hands killing me just to spend whatever life I had left with you. And it might have been short if you hadn't stepped in. And I'd have been fine with that. I'd have let you kill me without a fight."

"That's mental," Ed states. 

"Olu thought so too, but at least I'd have died knowing you were still you. That I hadn't ruined you like I do most things I love. Like my family, like this ship, like-" he is cut off again by Ed's lips. 

"I love you too," Ed says when they separate for air. "But if you ever pull a fuckery like that again," Ed says in all seriousness. "I will kill you."

Stede laughs, but Ed doesn't think it's funny. He isn't sure his heart can take the idea of losing Stede again, even if it was just another fuckery. 

"Only ones you're in on. How does that sound?"

Ed weighs the options and ultimately agrees because he still loves a good fuckery, and he had seen the planning and detail, even if he couldn't read it, that Stede had put into his death fuckery. 

"Fine, but no death, not yours, at least."

"Those are acceptable terms, Captain," Stede smiles, and Ed can't help but kiss him again. "So now what?" 

"Fuck if I know," Ed admits. "Never expected to make it this far."

"With me or just in general?" Stede asks. 

"Both," he admits. 

"Should probably at least sort out the whole crew thing. They might be a bit mad at you, especially Black Pete. He misses Lucius." And Ed does genuinely feel guilty about that. "But in time, I'm sure you can win them over. Most of them, maybe. We can try."

"Together?" Ed asks hopefully.

"Yes, together," Stede agrees.

[frostedpuffs]

every time someone makes a point to say that "Marinette doesn't wear makeup, she isn't like other girls" I want to SIGH because not only does Marinette Actually Wear Makeup in canon, it is exhausting that it is 2023 and people are still doing the "not like other girls" thing

[viivdle]

I stand before Cardan, and he looks mortifying in his beauty. He carelessly slumps down on the sofa in his chambers, blissfully unaware of my anxiety. Or, worse, blissfully aware.

“I ought to be mad at you,” he says, and I almost flinch at the sound.

“As I said, I didn’t kill my husband, Your Majesty,” my voice shakes, and I hold onto the hope he will think I am holding back tears.

“Yes, that would be correct. Your husband is sitting in front of you, well and alive. Is he not?”

viivdle productive era??

my ~1900w jurdan fanfic heaven and hell were words to me is out now!!

i tried something different with this one, hopefully it was a good something different

this fic is for @annamatix who i have the pleasure to call my friend. i hope this is just the right amount of "romancy"

happy ramadan<33

[justaz]

s1ep13 merlin, believing he will be dead by morning, goes to say goodbye to arthur and he leans against the door of arthur’s chambers and watches the glow of the fire light his skin golden, full of color and life that it had been sorely lacking while the prince was injured. he stares at the softness of arthur’s features and pressed the line of his profile into memory for while he passes he will wish for nothing more than to see arthur one last time, his smile and blue eyes one last comfort before he passes on to the otherworld. arthur turns to stare at him and frowns at whatever expression merlin is making. the prince kicks a weak foot out at the chair next to him and motions for merlin to join him. merlin slowly shuffles over but ignores the chair completely. he stops in front of arthur who watches him with wary confusion. the tug of his lips and the furrow of his brow sickeningly endearing and merlin allows himself to be selfish and leans down to press his lips to arthur’s.

the prince is sat frozen under merlin’s touch but he can’t find himself to care much about that, not when he finally knows what it feels like to kiss arthur. he hopes that will be his last sensation before the ever consuming nothing, he hopes he will close his eyes one last time only to find arthur grinning at him and calling him an idiot before leading him into paradise where he can watch arthur smile, hear him laugh, and feel his touch for all eternity. he pulls away and leaves before arthur can gather himself to form a response, dropping the letter explaining everything on the table as he passes. so he allows himself to be selfish twice - to take from arthur and to give, to let himself know what is feels to kiss the man, to embrace his feelings for him, and to have the man know him for who he truly is. he wishes to pass peacefully with no regrets. somehow that revolves entirely around arthur.

only…he survives the whole ordeal and yeah has a gnarly scar on his chest but is otherwise fit to return to his duties. which include taking care of the prince. of arthur. who he kissed. and who most definitely know about his magic by now. yeesh.

[requinum]

The cold comes in with him, sharp and bright, and so does a flurry of snow which swirls around him like something out of a children’s picture book, as if he weren’t a person but rather some sort of fae being.

fanart for stay by @quicktimeeventfull

[pencilofawesomeness]

Yui lies awake for an indeterminable amount of time, watching shadows make patterns on the ceiling above them. The heartbeat against her fingertips beats a constant tattoo against her skin, a reminder that she’s not alone, that the body next to her continues to live and breathe and exist in this world. 

—Famous Last Words Chapter 3, from May Death Never Stop You by @slexenskee

-

Okay so I binged this series in about the span of a week and it did things to my brain. The scene where Yui gets Satoru to come home and sleep lives rent-free so I had to draw it. She's the most little sister ever and this scene made me cry from the bittersweet wholesomeness. My utmost respect to slex for this masterpiece of a fic.

[losersimonriley]

Sundowning 1st chappie will be up in a few hours

[somestorythoughts]

Protective Rage Obi-Wan Fic

So. @fanfic-obsessed has this cool Protective Rage Obi-Wan story idea that yall should check out because it's really good and they've got a ton of cool AU ideas. And I had an idea about an apology scene for it and then the plot bunny that makes you do things like overcomplicate worldbuilding said "you know you could do a whole fic" and now I have 4000 words. I was thinking of splitting it up into parts cause that's a long post but frankly I'm tired and should've been in bed like 90min ago cause I have work tomorrow and mornings suck so it's staying a one shot with the paragraphs spaces cause I am NOT reformatting that now. Enjoy.

            Usually, when Quinlan’s pushing himself to finish a mission through this much pain, he’s running on determination, maybe some spite. This time it’s desperation.

            He’s not sure if the shouting starts before or after he hits the door panel – or maybe it’s been going on the whole time – but he can see Obi-Wan through the spots in his eyes and that’s good, that’s good, he can’t finish this and maybe his friend can –

            “Quin!”

            It’s like leaning on stone, Obi-Wan’s mind wonderfully shielded under the worry in his voice and Quinlan holds up a datachip for the hands around his arms. “Coded. Please.”

            “I’ll take care of it. I promise.”

            He’s staring up at the ceiling now but that’s alright. Obi-Wan has the data. Quinlan can break now.*

Ahsoka isn’t panicking, but only because she’s had a lot of practice keeping her head and she’s not friends with Master Vos. She’s met him though, and knows Obi-Wan and he are close, and she’s scared for him.

            “That’s an order Marrow!” Obi-Wan snaps and the medic someone called hisses in frustration from where Ahsoka’s holding him back. She isn’t sure why Obi-Wan’s so adamant that no one get closer to them, but she knows it’s serious. For all Obi-Wan hates the medbay he’ll work with the medics, let them see him elsewhere, and he knows better than to keep serious injuries from them.

            “General his leg is gangrenous if he doesn’t get immediate treatment he could lose it! As the head medic-”

            “Quin has to be seen by a Temple healer anyone else will make it worse. I don’t like it anymore than you do Marrow.” He’s resting a hand on Master Vos’ head and is holding his hand with the other, trying to sooth his mumbling friend.

            “Can you explain why while we wait for Healer Eerin?” She asked.

            Obi-Wan frowns, the look he gets when he’s trying to figure out how to explain something Force-related in English. “Marrow. The troopers who have trouble with excessive sound. If they were injured would you treat them in a noisy medbay?”

            Marrow scowls, but he stops splitting his attention between Master Vos’ leg and how best to get around Ahsoka and says, ���Of course not. Not if there was any way to avoid it.”

            “Quin’s psychometric. It’s a useful skill, but sometimes it’s like Force hypersensitivity.”

            Cody interrupts as Anakin enters. “Healer Eerin just arrived. She’s being escorted here.”

            “Any idea what happened?” Anakin says. He’s waiting by Ahsoka, whether because he already knows approaching is a bad idea or because he got the gist from the way the medics haven’t gotten closer is anyone’s guess.

            “Have to keep them safe.” Master Vos mutters and Obi-Wan’s face tightens, though his shields are still rock-solid.

            “Who Quin? Who do you need to keep safe?”

            But Master Vos never stopped talking, only just loud enough to be heard. He’s shivering too, voice breaking with groans. Whatever he was doing to walk on that leg – Ahsoka is very determinedly not looking at the swelling or the white that might be bone – he clearly can’t keep it up anymore. “Gotta keep them safe from the people and the senators and the Chancellor gotta do something useful with my unnatural powers what good are we if we can’t keep them safe apparently nothing I hoped I hoped I wasn’t gonna get my heart broken again I Obi they deserve better than this-”

            His words are cut off by the sound of the door opening as Healer Eerin and a Padawan healer sweep into the room in unfamiliar robes and go instantly to the downed Jedi. Marrow scowls heavy as thunder at not being able to treat a patient on his ship as they do, Healer Eerin passing something to Obi-Wan as she takes his place by Master Vos’ head. Obi-Wan squeezes his hand and stands, moving in line with the troopers around them so that he can slide the chip into the device and examine whatever Master Vos was so desperate to bring him.

            “Pop quiz Padawan Lele. Why do we use special gear for Master Vos?”

            Padawan Lele didn’t stop what they were doing as they replied: “Because his psychometry is super strong and the pain has seriously damaged his shields. Without the robes or equally strong shields he’ll feel too much of our minds and memories as well. This could delay his healing or damage his mind.”

            Marrow goes stiff and Ahsoka thinks that’s the first time she’s seen him look sheepish.

            For a few minutes, the room is a quiet tension, little sound aside from the Healers working or Master Vos’ delirious mumbling, fading in and out of hearing. Cody’s giving him the same worried look Ahsoka is, Master Vos sounds like his heart is as broken as his leg and she knows enough about how people work to think that the amount of self-deprecation she can hear isn’t a new thing.

            The rage, when it comes, is sudden as a lightning bolt and just as sharp. It’s gone just as quickly too – almost before Ahsoka and the other Padawan finish whipping around to stare at Obi-Wan who looks perfectly calm. Cody’s looking at him too, narrow-eyed in suspicion.

“Excuse me.” He says, still perfectly calm, and Ahsoka thinks of the weight of a sky prepared to burst and wonders if she should follow him, but the door is closed before she can decide.

“Been a while since I saw Obi-Wan get that angry.” Healer Eerin remarks.

“Huh?” Several of the troopers say. Anakin does too and the day has not been nearly overwhelming enough for Ahsoka not to role her eyes at how her oblivious master can lift a tank but not read anger when it’s shoved in his face.

“A little after Anakin first came to the Temple one of the teachers decided he was a poor fit for the Order and was trying to sabotage his work along with bullying him in class. Obi-Wan found out, asked Quin to watch Anakin for an evening, and went after the teacher. The man landed in the Halls of Healing with several broken bones and left as soon as he was cleared to move left for the furthest jedi outpost he could find. If he ever taught again I will be very surprised. Commander he’s safe to move but it would help if we had a clear path to the door.”

“You’re gonna catch flies Skyguy.” Ahsoka says faintly as Cody taps his comm to pass on the message. When he’s finished they all hear the trooper on the other end say, “By the way sir General Kenobi just left for Coruscant’s surface, said he had some business to attend to at the Senate.”

Cody nods, wearing the expression of concern and exasperation he gets whenever anyone he feels remotely responsible for does something dangerous without explaining why. “Check and see if there’s a way to find out what they’re doing.” He orders Crys as the Healers begin to maneuver Master Vos through the door.

“It’s one of the sessions journalists are reporting live sir.” Crys answers, pulling up the feed without needing to be asked, and they all group together to watch it.

*

Obi-Wan is, to put it bluntly, really fucking pissed. The anger in him pools like water, building and building, and he wills himself to keep calm control as he strides through the Senate building. If he gets too angry to think, things will go wrong.

Quinlan came to him because the things that had already gone wrong were even worse than any of them had been allowed to see, and he couldn’t fix it himself. He came to Obi-Wan for help putting things right.

Obi-Wan will be damned thrice over if he fails that mission.

He’s already sent the information on the datachip to the Council (though he doesn’t know when they’ll be able to see it), to all of the Commanders he has the contact information for (he’s not sure which of them made those particular lines of contact so secure but he trusts Cody’s view of them), and Madame Nu. They can’t afford to let this stay between the two of them, they need the backup. He knows the Council cares, is struggling as much as he is under the weight of the war, and the Commanders deserve to know and can keep their secrets. He includes Madame Nu because he doubts anyone would expect it, and the few interactions he’d seen between her and her single squad of troopers made him certain she adores them.

Plus, she studies Sith Temples. She’s gotta be more dangerous than she looks.

He walks into the rotunda where the Senate are debating the (very reasonable he’s read this one) Clone Rights bill, sees Palpatine, and allows his rage to fuel his leap for the podium.

“Tell me,” He says, cool as can be, as he smashes Palpatine’s face into the stand and kicks Amedda away when the asshole tries to interfere, “what the fuck the jedi did to you that you want our children murdered in their cribs?”

Order 66. Kill all the jedi. All of them.

“Who the fuck gave you the right to have an army bred and implant them all with control chips so that they couldn’t disobey, couldn’t be allowed to even think?”

Control chips that would wipe out the troopers’ minds, take away every thought and feeling and every piece of self that they’d fought to keep, chips that would turn the troopers his friends into the flesh droids senators liked to claim they were.

Palpatine snarled and shot off lightning. Obi-Wan deflected it and continued to ignore the screaming as he mused that perhaps Palpatine had decided there was no point in hiding when Obi-Wan was broadcasting these secrets to the Senate. Then he punched Palpatine below his sternum and then his ribs.

Ah, red lightsaber. There it is. He ducked and broke Palpatine’s arm.

“And while we’re at it, who the fuck allowed you to use those chips to control the Coruscant Guard and make them do your dirty work? Or withhold rations and bacta?”

It’s entirely possible he shouldn’t have included the information about the blackout missions and the extent of Palpatine’s control over the clones. That might have been the kind of thing they’d want to share themselves. Unless they couldn’t say anything?

“Even for the Sith you’re an exceptionally twisted shitstain.” He ducks the other lightsaber and wonders why this asshole had to learn to fight with two.

“You forced my family at blaster point to lead a war you orchestrate from both sides, forced our friends into slavery and now you want to take away everything our friends are when you use them to kill us and frankly Palpatine, I think the fuck not!”

The red lightsaber screams in his hand as he slices Palpatine’s head clean off.

*

Obi-Wan frowns as he takes in the scene. Huh, Amedda’s still here and oh that’s Master Windu and Master Yoda in the audience. He supposes some Jedi witnesses are a good idea. He grabs Amedda by the front of his robes and uses the Force to help him hold the heavy asshole over the edge of the podium with one hand, just to make sure he gets the point.

“Now you may have gathered that I’m very concerned about the clone troopers’ lack of rights. What about you?”

It turns out that Amedda is also very concerned about the clone troopers’ lack of rights. Good. “Full Republic citizenship and Senate representation that they elect instead of someone who make money off their bodies would be good too.” Obi-Wan adds, looking the Senator from Kamino dead in the eye. He’s pretty sure she’s calculating the distance between him and her pod when she nods.

If Obi-Wan had known all it would take to get his friends their rights was the public murder of one of his least favorite people, he’d have done that at the beginning of this thrice-damned war. The bill is passed very quickly and unanimously, and a couple Senators add a bit about backpay they’d had in the works as well and make some noise about allowing the clones to settle a moon or planet once they have the time to look the uninhabited ones over. That gets less enthusiasm but it’s not being shouted down and they can work with that, so Obi-Wan grins with all his teeth on display and says “I’m glad I only had to kill one politician today.”

The fear that ripples through the Force is unmistakable.

He puts Amedda down and heads to the Senate floor where the Coruscant Guard are waiting. Their shields aren’t bad but there’s awe shinning through them like sunshine in the dessert, bright and warm and painful with the twisting of old griefs and pains and shocked relief, and Obi-Wan says “I assume I’m going to be arrested?”

One of the men, who wears the rank of a Commander, takes of his helmet and asks, “Permission to speak freely sir?”

“Granted, forever and always.”

The man beams, and answers; “Then with all due respect sir, there is no way we’re going to arrest you.”

“Are you sure? I did just beat the Chancellor of the Republic to death.”

“Abso-fucking-lutely. Everyone on the Guard wants him dead within their first week here.”

“Thorn put your helmet back on, we’re not safe unless that law’s enforced.” Someone snaps and a different Commander approaches, leading Master Windu and Master Yoda. His shields are beskar-strong, but judging by his voice Obi-Wan would bet he’s glaring at Thorn.

“I’m feeling a bit spiteful.” Thorn grins and Fox gives that familiar huff that usually means the trooper in question is rolling their eyes underneath their helmet.

“Don’t look at us like that we’re not locking you up either.” Mace says dryly when Obi-Wan looks at him. “I will however, make sure your Padawan gets mindhealing sessions if I have to drag him there kicking and screaming myself. He’s overdue anyway.”

Obi-Wan winces but agrees. Quin hadn’t found solid proof of Palpatine grooming Anakin to be his Sith apprentice, but the information he had found made him suspicious. And once he read that, Obi-Wan can see a lot of things that support it.

Windu pulls him into a hug, startling Obi-Wan. The other Master doesn’t often want a lot of physical contact, and for him to initiate hugs is unusual. He sinks into it.

“Do you know how Quinlan is? Bant had to take him to the Halls.”

Windu shook his head. “I’ll ask.”

“To the Temple we will go after, inform everyone, and let you see your friend.” Yoda adds.

“Vos?”

Obi-Wan blinks at the stern commander. His shields are still thick but every single one of the other Guards are radiating concern and Obi-Wan wonders if Quinlan started this investigation because it was the Guard he wanted to protect.

“He found the information on Palpatine and brought it to me. He was seriously injured and delirious when I left him with the Healers.” The Commander twitches, just barely visible, and Obi-Wan asks, “I’m sorry, I don’t know your name?”

“Commander Fox.”

“Vos looked out for us.” Commander Thorn adds when it’s clear Fox isn’t going to continue. “He did his best to keep civilians off our backs, brought us bacta, snacks, and sweets when he could, tried to make us laugh. He’s our jedi even if it wasn’t official. But we haven’t seen him in weeks.”

Obi-Wan nods in understanding, then turns as Mace looks up.

“He’s in a coma. I can tell you more on the way, I trust the Guard but I don’t want to say this in the open.”

“I’m coming.” Commander Fox states and Commander Thorn nods.

“And perhaps a couple of the men. So we know how he’s doing?”

“I was going to ask one of you if you wanted to come. One would probably be best for now, I don’t know if the Healers are allowing visitors.”

“Just Fox then. I’ll watch out for our vode.” Thorn knocks his forehead gently against Fox’s, murmurs something none of them can hear, and leads the rest of the Guards away. The Jedi and single Commander push through the crowds and pile into a transport.

“Details Mace.”

It’s a sign of how serious it is that Mace doesn’t respond to the tone with a raised brow or eyeroll. “The gangrene is too serious; they have to amputate his leg at the knee. They aren’t sure how far he fell to break it that badly, but they know it’s been untreated for days. Best guess is he was running from someone and couldn’t find a place or the time to take care of it. He’s got some bruising and infected cuts on top of that which makes things worse, but they’re pretty sure they can deal with those. However. He’s not responding well to the healing. It’s not physical, it’s something mental. They aren’t sure what happened.”

Obi-Wan takes a deep breath and exhales shakily. Mace grips his shoulder till he stops quivering and asks slowly, “Do you have any idea what exactly happened the past few days?”

“He was almost completely out of it when he got to me.” Obi-Wan murmurs. “He, he said a lot of bad things about himself and a few things that reminded me about how some people talk about the Force. You know, when people call us or our skills unnatural. He wanted to protect someone, I’m not sure if it was the Jedi or the Coruscant Guard or someone else.”

The rest of the ride is quiet and tense.

*

Cody meets his general and general Windu at the hanger and finds himself, once again, relieved he’s wearing his armor. He’s not sure he’d survive his general finding out about the highly inappropriate reaction he had to the sight of his General beating up the Chancellor of the Republic on behalf of the troopers. His only consolation is the fact that he’s absolutely sure all the vode that aren’t asexual had the same reaction.

He is surprised to see Fox there, he hasn’t spoken to him in too long, and when he had Fox had been exhausted and tense. He’s been getting worried. He falls into step beside Fox as Obi-Wan updates him on the situation and waits till there’s no one near their group and murmurs, “You can take off the helmet if you want Fox. I promise they’re safe.”

Fox pauses, then yanks off his helmet almost violently. There’s more grey in his hair than there was last time, and a pair of scabbed-over cuts on his cheekbone. He looks like he was tired to the bone last week and hadn’t gotten any sleep this week.

“Fox-”

“Shut up.” Fox snaps, almost quiet enough to be missed by the generals, and Cody hesitates but thinks of Fox coming here to check on a severely injured jedi and decides to wait.

The Healer tells them that they can see Vos, but that they must be quiet and keep calm. The handful of Cody’s men that followed him wait so it’s Cody, Fox, Obi-Wan, and Windu that follow the healer into the room, Cody to offer moral support to his general as needed.

“Commander!” The healer yelps in alarm as Fox pushes past her, stripping off his glove and reach for the General’s limp hand, and Cody thinks of Obi-Wan using a rare order to keep Marrow at a distance and wonders what the hell Fox is thinking before Vos twitches, bare fingers curving towards where Fox has his fingers laid gently on his palm.

The healer scowled and examined the machines Vos was hooked up to. “The rest of you, no touching. Keep calm. You,” she pointed at Fox, who ignores her, heartbreak plain as day on his face “don’t move.”

Cody stays near the door, watching. Obi-Wan’s eyes have flicked towards Fox a couple times, but mostly he’s focused on General Vos. Windu is the opposite. The healer finishes examining the machines and holds her hand above Vos’ forehead, before making quiet excuses and leaving.

She comes back with Healer Eerin who preforms the same examination. “Anything wrong?” Obi-Wan asks.

“I don’t think so but I’m staying for the next 20 minutes to watch.”

It’s twenty minutes later that Healer Eerin kicks all of them out to eat except for Fox, who she brings a chair for. “I don’t know why, but your presence if helping him heal. I’m sure you have things to do but if it’s possible for you to stay a little-”

“I’m not leaving him.” Fow states, and Cody thinks of General Vos’s words on the bridge and heartbreak that hasn’t left his face and thinks oh.

They leave the door open when they go just for a bit, and Cody can tell Obi-Wan had the same idea as him because there’s concern and something that could become anger on his face. General Windu’s as inscrutable as always but Cody’s heard enough from Ponds to know the man takes threats to the jedi seriously. He shushes his troopers outside and waits.

“I’m sorry.”

It’s enough time that Cody had wondered if Fox was gonna stay silent and the shaking in his voice alarms him almost as much as the words. “I didn’t mean it I promise Quinlan. It was just a bad day and I snapped I’m sorry. You force-damned idiot it must have been days to find that and get so injured you know the Guard would’ve done anything they could for you even if I was being an asshole, you think Thorn didn’t smack me around the head when I told him? You’re our jedi Quinlan and we need you to wake up, I need you to wake up I can’t apologize properly if you’re sleeping, please, the Guard’s lost too many people please don’t let us loose our crazy jedi too.”

Fox is crying by the end of that, shaky sobs that scratch his throat, and Cody hits the panel to shut the door and turns to the two jedi.

“Well that answers that question.” Windo states. “I think the Commander will be there a while.”

“If it helps Quinlan heal I can’t speak against it.” Obi-Wan muttered. He slumps into a chair, exhausted. “It’s been a day. Who wants to eat?”

“I do.” Cody says. “And then I want to head to the barracks and make Thorn tell me what’s been going on with Fox, because I feel like I’m missing something important.”

*

Things get better after that, some slowly, some quickly. The Separatists decide it’s in their best interests to surrender to General Kenobi, and the war wraps up quickly with some planets staying separate and many arrests in the leadership (interestingly, a lot of crime groups that deal with jedi more than they would like to also decide to go clean after that footage. Who’d’ve thought?). The troopers learn about their new home with glee and throw themselves into learning how to be things other than soldiers with a mix of joy and apprehension. It takes time for the Coruscant Guard to be fully comfortable with their other brothers, but it’s something that the rest of the troopers work on furiously when they learn how hellish Coruscant had been for them. Anakin gets so much therapy (as do many other people) and the Jedi use time they have now that the war’s over to start distancing themselves a bit from the Senate, trying to ensure that they can’t be forced to lead an army again.

Fox is there when Quinlan wakes up, asleep and holding Quinlan’s hand and there are tears and apologies and promises. The Guard cheers when they get their general back because they love their crazy jedi as much as the other battalions. And the clones and jedi start to heal together.

[daisybell-on-a-carousel]

Fanfic idea: Nocturna, after disappearing during the crisis, wakes up to find herself in the current universe, where she spots the Red Hood, and can't help but compare him to the blood night sky she last saw, and oddly, the young Robin whom she had tried to adopt

[sortofanobsession]

Death is in the Details - Our Flag Means Death (Post Season 1 fic) Part 5

 (Ao3) Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 6

Summary: The search for the not-so-dead Gentleman Pirate continues. Izzy Hands still can't know. Stede and Oluwande have a chat about their search for Blackbeard. Jim and Frenchie finally get a solid lead.

(Spoilers of you haven’t watched the full season)

Author’s Note: Sorry this took so long. I have been avoiding the trailer for the new season because I wanted to finish this. The last chapter is almost done. Enjoy!

wordcount: 1k+

Warnings: Mentions of violence, threats, anger, resentment, doubt and depression. Typical Pirate stuff.

Chapter 5: Secret Hunt

"The fuck took you so-"

A blade flew past Izzy Hands' face and into the wood behind him. 

"Ask that one more time, and I'll have Jim here feed you your own tongue," Blackbeard stated. 

"You're fucking late," Hands asserts. 

"I'm the fucking captain!" Blackbeard snaps. "My time is the only time! Fucking mind your place."

Blackbeard storms towards his cabin, only stopping to give orders. He sends them towards a popular seaway that wasn't far from what little they knew of Stede's possible whereabouts. Any questions were met with malicious answers that boil down to "BECAUSE I'M THE FUCKING CAPTAIN!"

The crew had heard rumors that the Revenge was seen in waters it wouldn't usually be. Rumors that Blackbeard was more vicious and unhinged than ever. And that hadn't sat well with Stede Bonnet. So they kept going. Following every lead they had. To hear that Blackbeard had been seen with a silent and lithe bladesman and a sharp-witted pirate with an affinity for music in his company, more so than his first mate, gave Stede some hope that the Ed he knew was still there. He hoped that meant that Jim and Frenchie were more than okay. That they had not only Ed's trust but his protection and vice versa. That the people he was trying so desperately to reach were still together. He had to keep trying. If he failed, then what was the point of making things right? Sure, most of his crew was alive and on a ship because he found them. He doesn't have their death on his conscience. He'd made things right for his family and most of his crew to some extent. But he would never sleep well again if he didn't fix the biggest thing he broke. Ed Teach. He hadn't meant to break the man known as Blackbeard, but he had. And that was just not something he could live with. If he could fix the remaining wrongs with his crew in the process, he would. But Ed was his priority. He wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. 

"What are we going to do about Izzy Hands?" Oluwande asked. "Word is he is still his first mate."

"Best bet," Stede says, "don't let him get to you or kill you. Worst, kill him first."

"Not very helpful," Wee John points out.

"Well, keep an extra blade on you," Stede says. "Like Jim would. Or something for a fight. If Izzy Hands wants a fight, well, he'll finally get one. That better?"

That seemed to raise their spirits a bit. The idea of them actually possibly being prepared for Hands' treachery was good in their book. And even having the upper hand because Hands thinks they are dead. The element of surprise was on their side. 

"You know if everyone thinks you're dead, then so does Ed, right?" Olu points out when it was just he and Stede. "I know he thinks we are."

"I know," Stede says in a forlorn tone. "But we will fix it."

"And if he kills you?" Olu asks. "Blackbeard, that is."

"If that's what he wants, then so be it," Stede says.

"You wouldn't put up a fight at all, would you?"

"Fight Ed? Don't think I could if I wanted to."

"And you don't want to, do you?"

"Not a bit, no," Stede said with more conviction than Olu had seen from the Gentleman Pirate. That wasn't saying much since Olu hadn't ever thought Stede Bonnet was much before, not like this. 

"So your plan is to just keep going until we find Blackbeard, as we have since we got here," Olu says, gesturing to the ship they are on. 

"Correct," Stede nods. 

"Fight the crew of the Revenge, the same crew that was more than willing to kill all of us."

"If we have to, and I'll deal with Izzy Hands," Stede insists.

"You, you're going to kill Izzy Hands yourself?" Olu sounds skeptical at best.

"Well, he betrayed Ed, turned me over to the crown, and left you all for dead. Yes, if it needs to be done. I'll do it."

"Technically, Blackbeard ordered it," Olu points out.

"And that's on me, it seems," Stede says. 

"Nah, that was all him."

"I appreciate your loyalty, my good friend, but Ed's actions come from my betrayal."

"But you didn't actually betray him. Izzy Hands did. And look what happened."

"Yes, but he doesn't know that. Ed thinks I left him to go home to my wife and died. Can you blame him?"

"He left us for dead, so, uh, YES! YES, I CAN!" Olu snaps. "HE KILLED LUCIUS!

"Alright, that's fair," Stede laments. "And that does pain me. Lucius was my friend. He was a very good scribe. And he is gone because of me. I can't undo that."

"You really aren't going to admit he is a right bastard and made his own choices and chose to murder your friends," Olu says with a sigh. 

"I'm sorry, Oluwande, I truly am, and I'm trying to-"

"Yeah, yeah, you are trying to make things right. We all get it. But this might be one giant suicide mission. Because that ruthless bastard has lived up to his name. And his first mate wants your head on a spike and will gleefully watch Blackbeard gut you before you can utter a fancy apology."

"Colorful image, but fair." Stede agrees. "I'm not afraid of them."

"You should be!" Olu reiterates. 

"Probably, but I'm not. Izzy Hands cannot do much worse than he already has. And Ed, well, if Ed wants me dead, then I'd already be dead."

"He already thinks you are," Olu reminds him. The man felt like they were talking in circles again. 

"Exactly, maybe he'll be happy to see me," Stede says hopefully.

"Or he'll see it as another betrayal."

"Maybe, won't know until we find them. So keep up the good work." Stede says with finality. Olu shakes his head but goes to check on the rest of the crew. This could get them all killed but what do they have to lose? Their friends were still there. Jim was still there. They were already left for dead. They might as well get some revenge like real pirates. 

Frenchie and Jim continue to collect what information they can glean from the few ships they pillage as they secretly continue the search for their friends. Weeks go by until while raiding an English Merchant vessel, Frenchie and Jim hear a man lament about them being the second pirates to raid them and that they didn't have shit, so Blackbeard would probably just slaughter them all. But what really caught the pair's attention was when the man mentioned a key feature of the pirate's ship.

"What kind of pirate flag has a stupid full on it? Useless creatures," the man had said. Frenchie looks at Jim. Without hesitation, Jim grabs the man by his collar and drags him to Blackbeard. Luckily, or by Blackbeard's command, they didn't know or really care. Izzy Hands was angrily overseeing the lackluster hold and offloading what might still have value. Blackbeard had been watching the chaos from the top deck. The captain raises a brow as Jim kicks the man's knees, so he kneels before Ed. Jim nods at Frenchie as they keep a knife to the sailor's neck. 

"This man may know something about a certain ship we have been looking for," Frenchie says. 

Blackbeard narrows his intimidating glare at the man on his knees. 

"Speak now, or I will remove the skin from your bones while you beg for death," the Kraken threatens. 

And the man starts babbling and begging about things Ed couldn't care a bit about, and it was trying his patience. Blackbeard's blade digs into the man's shoulder with an angry growl. 

"You might want to tell him about the ship with the bird on the flag, the one you mentioned before," Frenchie tells him. 

And the man does. He tells them about how they were raided days before by a pirate ship with a blonde man who was asking questions about recent attacks. Ed's attacks. Something twists in the pirate captain's chest as the man describes Stede almost exactly as Ed remembered him. Almost. Again, he was described as less of a gentleman, but it was still undeniable. If this man was talking about this, the others might try and use this info for mercy. If Izzy found out that Stede and possibly the crew were alive, bad things could happen. He couldn't risk it. Ed pulled away to come up with a plan as Frenchie asked questions about the rest of the pirate crew. Frenchie genuinely grinned when the man talked of what was very clearly his mates. Jim even seemed a bit uplifted. 

"Kill them all," Ed orders.

"What?" Frenchie asks. 

"Izzy can't know any of this," Ed says. "We have what we need, even which way they went, this stays with us, which means…"

"Dead men can't betray you," Jim says.

"Exactly," Ed says. He mentally pulls back on the Blackbeard persona, runs the man through with his sword, and has the two throw him overboard before he leaves to dispatch as many of the merchant crew as he gave the word to slaughter everyone. Frenchie looks a bit unsure as he looks at Jim.

"Fucking bastard isn't wrong," Jim acknowledges. 

"We did tell him to keep up the act," Frenchie says. 

"Burn and sink her!" Blackbeard commands. A few pirates cheer. 

As soon as the Revenge is some distance from the burning vessel, Blackbeard orders them after the commandeered ship he was after. When Izzy asks him why, Ed tells him that there was something valuable on that ship that was taken from the ship they just sank. And Ed wanted it. That seemed to satisfy Izzy. Izzy sets the crew to work as Ed retires to his cabin. He sneaks into the secret room that still holds some reminders of Stede, and Ed laughs. He laughed because this was insane. He had found a real lead. He could find Stede now. He looks at himself in the mirror and scrubs at his khol-covered face. A few years fall as he scrubs harder. He might actually see Stede. Not long ago, he had thought he would never get this chance. But what was he going to do when he did see him? He would demand answers. But something twisted inside him again. What would he do if he didn't like Stede's answers? What if Stede didn't-

No, he would deal with it when he found them.

[deiaiko]

#19.3 Unravel

It had been some time since Agni felt this nervous. Not even talking with Jinsung Ha recently had made him feel like this. He fiddled with the mask on his hand as he waited for Grace to come back. He had thought hard on how to deliver the news, but he knew that no matter how he phrased it, Grace would be upset. Velt nuzzled under his palm and Agni gave her a few pats, before deciding that she would be better inside her bowl in his lighthouse, just in case the shinsu acted up around Grace after he received the news.

Grace came back wearing the comfiest shirt and shorts Agni knew Grace liked to wear on lazy days. He joined him on the floor, and they ate dinner together. Agni always finished last, so while waiting for him to finish his meal, Grace told him about his day with Bam. Grace was intrigued by how much his way of thinking had changed, and how glad he was to be able to be by Bam's side when he was having a bad day. It reminded Agni of the hidden floor, when Grace faced his sworn enemy.

They left the used bowls on the coffee table and went to brush their teeth. Afterwards, they turned off the light and went upstairs to sit on their bed. Grace's curious gaze never left him, and Agni curled his feet nervously.

Grace was the one who broke the silence. "So…what is it?"

Agni's breath hitched. This was the part he dreaded most. "I talked with the crocodile earlier. Did you know that he could manipulate stone already?"

"Huh." Grace needed a few seconds to let the information sink in. "Didn't Rak learn it on the Hell train? How does he know it?"

"Turns out our crocodile also traveled back to the past like us. He found the young crocodile and taught him."

"What?!" Grace gasped, wide eyed. "That means our Rak is–!!"

"He's dead." Agni quickly snuffed out that hope. They had been in delusion for long enough; it was time that they faced the bitter truth. "He suffered a fatal injury from the explosion. He couldn't have lasted long without proper help." Agni omitted the actual cause for Rak's death, but still kept his words true. "I'm sorry."

"…Oh." Grace looked lost, just like Agni was. His lips parted a little, but they closed before any sound escaped.

Agni gently squeezed Grace's hand, encouraging and comforting as he let the silence stretch on, giving Grace some time to process the information.

"Agni…" Grace whispered, "do you think Hatz and Isu…?"

Agni bit his lip and avoided his gaze, as the nightmare of that day replayed in his mind. He witnessed Hatz get his arm ripped off when trying to protect him. He could still recall the clang of a sword hitting the floor, and Hatz's suppressed scream that gnawed deep at his guilt. He witnessed Isu get beheaded after being taken hostage, the memory of warm blood painting them both still vivid like it happened yesterday. 

Agni refused to acknowledge their possible deaths, because it felt like a nightmare that one day he could hopefully wake up from. He avoided the topic when Grace brought it up, so he wouldn't have to say it aloud and make it real. He had been so hard on himself, because he couldn't get rid of the feeling that he had failed Grace and everyone else involved.

Agni knew this had to change if he wanted to live better, now that they had gotten a second chance. So he swallowed down the lump in his throat that had built up over the years and asked mostly to himself; "What are the odds of their survival?"

"There's always a chance–"

"Grace." Agni looked him straight in the eye. "They were already severely injured before the explosion hit."

Grace fell silent and went still.

Agni felt a pang of guilt upon witnessing Grace's reaction. "Sorry. I didn't mean to snap." Agni fiddled with his hands. He realized that he didn't know how much Grace knew of what happened. "My scar…do you know how I got it?"

"I…was told it was from the family heads' battle." Grace looked thoughtful. Agni knew he was trying to be careful with his words. "A stray attack?"

"It could have been worse." The memory of the scorching heat on his skin felt like it had only happened yesterday. He passed out right when he was about to heal Isu, and only found out later that he also lost sweetfish at that time. The days he spent recovering from the burn, to withstand the excruciating pain every second he was conscious, and finally coming to terms that it'd be a permanent scar, was one of the turning points that had changed him forever. Were Grace not there to care for him, he might have ended up destroying himself even more.

Agni hadn't realized he had his left hand clawing on his cheek until Grace pried his hand off and frowned, "You're doing it again."

"Maybe I should wear the mask…" Agni muttered to himself. After all, Grace gave it to him less so he could hide the scar but more to prevent him from unconsciously hurting himself. The only time he could safely take it off was when Grace was around.

Agni bit his lip nervously when Grace didn't reply. He no longer had the courage to look Grace in the eye that spoke so much concern, so he leaned close and rested his head on Grace's chest. "Rak, Isu, Hatz and Hwaryun were trying to get me out of that damned place. But we were caught while escaping, and…it was a bloodbath. I was…too occupied to react to the incoming heat. Rak shielded us from the explosion. And when I woke up…"

"They weren’t with you," Grace finished it for him after Agni trailed off a moment too long.

Agni nodded dazedly, "I've been telling myself that they're still alive, after a blow that could kill rankers. But…who am I kidding? I was lucky enough to survive with just this little–" Agni vaguely pointed to himself– "inconvenience."

Agni felt a hand gripping his arm, and he pulled away to see Grace looking at him with a pained expression. His eyes were glossy and his lips were pulled into a thin line. Trusting his instinct, Agni reached out to gently trace and cup Grace's cheek with his free hand.

"I'm sorry," Agni muttered. "I'm sorry, for not telling you sooner."

Agni silently witnessed tears that streamed down on his love's face. It was a bitter sight that Agni wished he'd never have to see again, that he had tried to avoid for so long by not telling him. He pulled Grace in and held him close to his chest, as if Agni was trying to gather his own crumbled heart back together.

Grace mumbled their late best friends' names as he held onto him tighter, shaking from each breath he took between sniffles.

Agni felt his own eyes sting with unshed tears. He remembered the years he spent climbing the tower together with his old team. Despite their banter being his source of headaches, Agni knew he too had come to acknowledge them as his cherished friends. Only when they were gone did Agni realize how much he'd miss having them around. Seeing the younger them didn't exactly close the gaping hole in his heart, but at least the emptiness was more filled.

Agni squeezed Grace tighter. "We have their younger selves with us now. We will protect them better this time."

Grace only nodded and sank further into his embrace. And Agni planted kisses on his hair, relishing the thought that after everything he had gone through, Grace was still a constant in his life. As long as he had him, everything would be okay.

When Grace started shaking again, Agni caressed his hair and hummed a comfort song they had known by heart. Still, it didn't make falling asleep any easier for Agni, especially not after admitting that his nightmare was very much real. However, as he had been through grief…this, too, would pass.

Masterlist

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[gerandor]

A one piece x satsuriko no tenshi crossover. Where Zoro is Zack and Sanji is Rachel. Other one piece characters occupy the building as God and other angels, but i haven’t yet decided on them. The focus is on zosan and their death pact.

Zoro is terrible at figuring out his way out of the building but is good at fighting. Sanji is the brain of the breaking out operation. He makes a pact with Zoro. “I’ll help you get out of here if you promise to kill me at the end.” And zoro agrees and makes sure Sanji doesn’t get killed by anyone but him. Along the way, they learn to trust each other and Zoro realizes that he likes Sanji too much to kill him. Even after he realizes that Sanji isn’t a sacrifice but an angel himself. Even after he realizes that sanji had killed his father and his brothers (i know. It’s uncharacteristic behavior for sanji but it has to be this way for the crossover to make sense). Zoro finds out that Sanji’s father and brothers have been abusive to him and Sanji is grappling with a lot of self worth issues and thinks he deserves to die for his sins.

Anyway, they finally make it out after the building collapses behind them. And when Sanji asks Zoro to honor their oath and kill him…zoro confesses instead.

[alicentsultana]

And now, an excerpt of Death Suits You, my new alicole fic:

"You're the only one I can tell these things to." Alicent confided to him. Criston kissed the palm resting on his cheek. They stayed looking at each other, shamelessly, helplessly. Alicent felt how heavy his gaze was, because he never condemned anything she does, because he looks at her as if she a celestial blessing. It scares her, because she knows how deep his devotion is, she knows the extention of his and her feelings. And if she asks, he will give in. 

She wants him to give in, it's what they deserve.

[hood-ex]

Honestly amazing to me that fic crossovers between the same characters from different universes aren't more popular in our fandom. Like where's a fic where main universe Dick, Talon Dick, Earth 3 Dick, and Dark Knights of Steel Dick all end up in the same universe and have to work together?

[urban-shade]

i dont actually know for sure that sebastian has 4 fingers and its not just a stylization thing i might be misleading people 😭

i keep trying to look at all the other humanoid models in the game and they also have 4 fingers, or their hands are just blobs (mr lopee)

but i find it really interesting that he puts his ring on his outermost finger, which to a 5 fingered hand that had a pinky removed, WOULD be the ring finger. But putting it there on a 4 fingered hand doesn't make sense, as the ring would be subject to more wear and tear / bumps from the outside

[nomsfaultau]

Daily ask №27!

Turn the lights off x Fault edition because why not!

For context TTLO is my unpublished fic that I'm working on. The main plot is that Tommy accidentally gets into the cryptid world where he meets new friends and uncovers the truth about his past.

1. In TTLO cryptids are people who have died in some unusual way and then stayed in the community's memory as folklore, cautionary tales, etc. After some emotions and belief are poured into them, they reappear as monsters aka cryptids. That could include anything from vampires to sirens to a girl who cut their head open on a rock and emerged as some mushroom monstrosity. Now that that's out of the way, what sort of cryptids would Fault characters be, if they were one?

2. What sort of a cryptid would YOU be? On that note, I might've made you canon in TTLO for the funsies. You're a mute author who lived in the main town quite some years ago, but one time the town's connection to the other towns got temporarily cut off for whatever reason and with that, a paper and ink shortage happened. You, due to not being able to express your stories and ideas, went completely mad and wrote all over your walls with blood. And died shortly. Now you're chilling in the cryptid world. Thoughts?

3. Do you have any fic ideas that you really enjoy but don't even try to fulfil because you know you won't be able to? Share 'em!

4. How would YOU like to mess up my story if you got the chance to enter it? Yk how I interact with the Fault characters but in reverse. Go on, cause chaos.

5. Would you actually be interested in me ranting about TTLO? Not in asks, of course, just in general? °👉👈°

Philza.

There’s an old man who lives at the edge of town. Been there far longer than you or me, and some say our grandparents could claim the same, and so could theirs. His smile is meltingly warm, but something ain’t right. Might be the look in his eyes, distant, like he’s lookin at a memory instead of you. Might be the crows that always circle over head, like they know he’s already decomposing. The old man’s nice enough folk if you ever talk, but don’t ever linger too long. Not that you’ll run out of welcome; it’s the opposite you best be worrying about with that one. Every few years a kid gets too curious, gets taken underwing by the old man. He collects the oddballs, the ones who don’t quite fit in. Always young, always someone who won’t be missed. The kids who go to him look happier but…only for a little while. Hard to smile when you’re gone. Anderson was the most recent, good head on that one. He is going big places one of these days. Or was. Now his only destination is 6 feet under. And the old man? Well. There’s a young man who lives at the edge of town. Been there far longer than you or me, and some say our grandparents could claim the same, and so could theirs. 

Wilbur. 

Nobody looks the homeless in the eyes. Fingers drumming on dashboards, pinned on stoplights and passengers and mirrors and anywhere but the man on the street corner whistling for loose coins. Nobody looks the homeless in the eyes, and so no one sees when the winter hollows them out to something hopeless. No one sees when starvation claws out everything inside until all that’s left is hunger, hunger, hunger. No one sees when life leaves those eyes. No one sees. Today there was a new stranger in town. It doesn’t draw more than glances despite being a head taller than the crowd. No one can bear to look the new stranger in the eyes. Maybe he doesn’t have any. But the town does notice when people begin to go missing, if only because these ones were important enough for their deaths to matter. The new stranger doesn’t beg like the others do. He doesn’t need to. The new stranger whistles a jaunty tune as it drifts in and out of so-called society, its lips stained with blood. 

The Blade. 

A good soldier never falters, never loses, never ceases. They say he was the best soldier, once. The war was a brutal one, long and cruel. Maybe there was honor in it, maybe there wasn’t. It doesn’t matter so much when there’s an enemy before you and a threat to your life. It matters even less when you’re losing. The fort was over run, the flag long since ripped down. His fellow warriors bled out in messy, unremarkable ways. Sudden, with no time to mourn or care, as if they weren’t his brothers in arms. The invading army was taking prisoners if you lay down your weapons and accepted indignity. Not for a second did he consider surrender, though there wasn’t a hope of surviving when outnumbered twenty to one. But a good soldier never falters. They say he was the best soldier, once. He did not hesitate, throwing himself at the next foe, and the next, fighting tooth and nail. One man can’t take on an army, but he tried. The soldier fought day and night. It was not an enemy that laid him low but the collapsing of his own exhausted body. Sleep claimed him once and for all. But a good soldier never loses. They say he was the best soldier, once. So he simply picked himself back up and continued until panting and soaked in viscera he alone stood in the husk of the ravaged fortress. And yet, he had not yet won. A soldier’s duty does not end with one battle. One man can’t take on a war, but he did. The soldier hunted down every last opponent, a wave of slaughter shredding through battalions until the brutal was over. But what is a soldier during peace? Nothing. Relentlessly, the soldier continues to wage war upon any and all he encounters, prowling the wilderness and waiting for the next fight. Because a good soldier never ceases. They say he was the best soldier, once. They don’t say what he is now. 

Tubbo.

You hear about Rhodes’ kid? Shame. Damn shame. Such a sweet kid, friendly. Too friendly. Got drawn in like a moth to flame with those- well, I mean cult’s strong language and I don’t want to tread on toes with whose god is right, but…mm. Bad sorts. Sweet as honey, sure, but I had a feeling in my gut it was going to break bad when the kid started hanging around at their church meetings. Should’ve opened my mouth, but you know how desperate they were for friends. You remember the news article, right? How many pieces did they find the kid in again? Somethin like four hundred thousand? Huh. Well all I’ll say -and you don’t tell Rhodes this yah hear? He don’t need no more heart break. But I don’t see how the cops figured out it was them. And- and you really can’t repeat I said this- but I could’ve sworn I saw his kid today, handing out fliers for that cult like they weren’t all arrested years ago. Hey! I know they’re dead! And yet…well. Couldn’t’ve been anyone else. Maybe it’s nothing, Mrs. Fletcher, but I saw Jasmine talkin to them, and- and has she come back from school yet? …oh. Maybe we should round up the search party. Better safe than sorry. 

Tommy. 

They had to chain the door to the water tower, though it’s far too late. Not that anybody lives in the surrounding town anymore despite all the new vacancies; they say the tap still tastes of iron. The chain is bulky and intimidating, but everyone knows it was locked before too and it didn’t save anyone. If anything it makes it a challenge, and all the threatening signs they put up after would only tempt more dares from reckless teens if the town still had those. It had to have been a dare gone wrong. Had to be. Because otherwise that meant there was someone in town who’d drag a teenager all the way up a water tower just to drown him, and nobody could handle the thought. The faucets ran red for weeks after. The health officials swore up and down it was safe despite the color. Maybe they were right. Maybe what happened after had nothing at all to do with the dead kid, but nobody really believes that. Because even if no one held that kid down thrashing and gurgling, surely there was someone to blame. Everyone, maybe. The friends who pressured him to climb up, the parents who didn’t enforce curfew, the maintenance worker who forgot to lock the facility. Each dragged out, their every flaw magnified and contorted into something intolerable. The lucky were ran out of town mottled with bruises. The justice didn’t stop there, of course. Onto the bully who must’ve driven the teen to it, the neighbor who could’ve warned the parents when he snuck out of the house, the passerby who might’ve seen them crossing the street. Fewer and fewer survived the trials, the fingers pointed at one another quick to turn into claws. It spiraled out into uncontrolled accusations, mobs descending upon any and all and soon unraveling into pure anarchy. The town ripped itself apart. Literally, viscerally. The rivers ran scarlet with their blood, staining the banks and their hands. It couldn't be helped. The town had developed a taste for blood. 

brooo your world building is so sickkkkk ahhh.

2.Yeah that’s probably how I go out tbh. I’d not be functional without the ability to write or draw. Hope someone at least copied down the bloody words otherwise that was waste of time smh. Some people just don’t appreciate the fact that the ~5 liters of blood the average person has doesn’t actually go that far. 

And God already assigned me vampire for my monstersona. But a couple years ago I had a dream about a fallen angel who was deeply in denial about it. They were a thick ring of white feathers and periodic wings covered in golden eyes that wept as they were forced to confront the fact that the human world was soon to be invaded by demons, and the forces of hell would be slaughtered. So like ideal bod am I right gamers. 

3.Not a fic, but a game. Multiple endings. Had it before SBI, but more vague notions in the years I’ve had it. Starts with Phil moving into a new house. Some clear trauma hidden, world building set up. Then teen hero Tommy stumbles into his house suffering a concussion, thinking it’s his house. Real bad off. Phil helps him out natch, ends up with a bleeding kid asleep on his couch and is just trying to cope with that. When Tommy gets better he’s freaked out and defensive and runs away immediately. But also…now he knows someone who can do stitches. And so the next time is weeks later and he’s dragging in a hissing and panicking fellow teen hero, who is far less okay with a civilian knowing they’re hurt and possibly learning their identity. Cue Phil beginning to run into more and more teen heroes and slowly earning their trust. It’s mostly about picking the right dialogue to build up rapport, though with some minigames for things like giving the kids medical aid, getting them the right presents that are helpful for either vigilante or civilian life, and making tasty food to fill their scrappy bodies and win them over. It is very, very difficult though. 

Cause like. The reason they’re all kids is because heroes kinda don’t last long enough to become adults? It’s a very gritty setting, focusing on the factors that drive kids of all different backgrounds into becoming heroes and the poor ways they cope with the pressure. With Tommy it’s like a sanctioned way to get out his anger issues and receive adoration. Techno’s dead parents were villains so he feels like he has to prove he isn’t like them bc of societal pressure. Probably in foster care, so it’ll be time consuming to try and adopt him. Tubbo was meant to be a sidekick but got shoved into the role, technically with the support of a hero agency but there’s way too much pressure to fill an adult role. It’s a toxic situation, but Tubbo is convinced he has to do this to save everyone (but himself) and the heroes have enough power to make things very difficult for Phil if he tries to help Tubbo too much. Niki is absolutely seething about the state of things, and is honestly more a vigilante because she refuses to sit back on corrupt ‘good guy’ practices. She’s homeless, but wary of any authority figures so has to warm up to consider crashing at Phil’s. Stuff like that idk its very nebulous and I’m kinda making stuff up rn. Thoughts about abusive parents, or parents that force into the good hero role in a perfectionist way (Ranboo maybe?), maybe a kid starting villainy? It’s a very extended cast thing. 

Some are way more trusting, others have bad experiences with adults, others think Phil is a civilian and so needs to shut up and be protected. Bonding scenes like helping protect a secret identity, or distracting a villain in a fight, or patching up wounds, or baking to keep up with superhero metabolisms, or giving life advice (be it for prom date or nemesis). Phil is running around herding cats and lots of the time supporting one means others might not stay safe. Also Phil in the past got like ptsd from a villain attack and so has to deal with his own problems, idk details. And also finds out his corporate job is helping the BBEG uh oh. Phil probably get kidnapped to draw out all the heroes to save him. Or, well, the ones with negative relationships are unlikely to help, making it harder for the rest to succeed. 

The endings come into play considering how many kids you’ve managed to take care of/win the trust of/get to safer situations. Some are far far harder to convince to trust Phil, or may be down but Phil’s ability to help may be limited. Essentially, the higher the relationship bars are with everyone the better the ending. Neutral or negative relationships lead to stuff like injuries or deaths, though not necessarily related to the kid with the low stats always. Cause obviously you’d care more about the kids that you went through the effort of getting their routes right. So it could be like a teammate failed to help, or they weren’t able to cohesively function as a group, or Phil hadn’t knocked in enough sense to stop being self sacrificial/more invested in taking the villain down than making sure no one’s hurt, or the kid that could’ve dragged the injured one to get healed by Phil didn’t trust him and the injured hero died without medical intervention. With better endings being very difficult since a lot of the kids have conflicting needs and you’d have to play like perfectly to get even good stats with everyone (impossible to max out everyone). But that leads to things like no one getting hurt, and progressing to getting kids with the highest stats into safer lives thereafter and more support for others.

4.I don’t know too much, but based on the world building I would try to disrupt all the folklore that the characters survive off of. Make like a youtube/podcast debunking all the myths, get hella famous, and do everything I can to disrupt the word of mouth belief that the cryptids rely on. In the human world I'm hailed as fighting disinformation. In the cryptid world I'm like thanos probably.

5.I am SO DOWN oh my God yes please.